Bittersweet

As excited as I was/am to move to New York, there was/is still a good chunk of me that was really sad to leave Pennsylvania.  I lived there for four years.  We moved a lot when I was growing up, so in my life I've only lived two places that long or longer: NYC for college and Dallas for junior high and high school. 

I loved pretty much everything about living in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, with the only exception being that my closest besties and family were 2-3 hours away.  I loved that the area was so beautiful and charming and that everything, and I mean absolutely everything, I needed was within a 15 mile radius from my apartment, including all the fun and attractions of Center City Philadelphia. 

Joe and I always saw ourselves in the Hudson Valley in New York long-term, but we had planned to live in Pennsylvania for at least 5 years or so after I graduated law school.  I thought we'd start our married life there and start our family there.  Had things gone differently job-wise we would have stuck to that plan, but it just didn't make sense to stay when we had the opportunity to move now.  It's a good thing ultimately, but I would've been content to stay put for now too.

Before I left, I went in for my last pedicure at my most favorite nail place of all time and I explained that it was the last time I would see them.  The owner asked me if I had family in the area and I said no.  He said, "oh, so you have no reason to come back here," which is precisely when I realized oh my gosh, I have no reason to ever come back here.  Alumni events at the law school maybe?  Maybe.  I had never really thought about the move as so final, but that realization stung a little.  With all the excitement over New York and the future, I had forgotten that I was pretty content with where I already was and with the present (the job situation excluded of course).

The Pennsylvania chapter of my life was a huge one and I can't just let it go without a proper send-off.  So the next couple posts are for you, PA.  Thanks for being so good to me.

First, my beloved apartment.  Only a mile from the law school, two blocks from the train to Center City, spacious with plenty of storage.  The first place Joe and I ever lived together and where we got engaged.  I think I'll miss you most of all.